A. Field of Invention
The invention relates in general to a device and method for wound therapy that is capable of treating a variety of wound types, including infection wounds, burn wounds, diabetic ulcers, post amputation wounds, surgical wounds, and the like. Specifically, the present device is related to wound treatment devices and methods that utilize negative pressure therapy.
B. Background Art
The concept of using negative pressure in the treatment of wounds has been around for decades. For example, some recent U.S. patents, including U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,636,643, 5,645,081 and 6,142,982, describe a number of different types of negative pressure wound healing equipment. The equipment described and disclosed in the prior art, however, is bulky and requires complicated associated equipment such as suction pumps, vacuum pumps and complex electronic controllers. Thus, the present devices that utilize negative pressure therapy are bulky, power intensive, costly and non-disposable.
It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a negative pressure wound therapy device that is self-contained and entirely disposable after use.
Additionally, it is also an object of this invention to provide a device and method for creating a negative partial pressure without the use of electrically/chemically powered suction and/or vacuum pumps.
It is also an object of this invention to provide a device and method for creating a suction environment around a wound, without the need for electrically-produced suction or the use of a vacuum pump.
These and other objects will become apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art in light of the specification, claims and drawings appended hereto.